Saturday, January 10, 2009

THE BOEING PELICAN CARGO AIRCRAFT

The Pelican concept

It would be the biggest plane ever built, a huge high-capacity cargo plane concept that has military, commercial and even space potential. The Pelican would have almost twice the external dimensions of the world's current largest aircraft, the Russian An225. It could transport more than five times the An225's payload, up to 1,400 tons of cargo. The Pelican would stretch more than the length of a football field. It would have a wingspan of 500 feet, and a wing area of more than an acre. Designed primarily for long-range, trans-oceanic transport, the Pelican would fly as low as 20 feet above the sea using the latest flight-control technology and taking advantage of an aerodynamic phenomenon called ground effect that reduces drag and fuel burn. Over land, it would fly at altitudes of 20,000 feet or higher. Commercially, the aircraft's size and efficiency would allow it to carry types of cargo equivalent to the cargo that container ships carry—at more than 10 times the speed. The military could even use the Pelican as a mother ship for unmanned vehicles and as a potential first-stage platform for piggybacking reusable space vehicles up to an appropriate launch altitude.The Boeing Pelican ULTRA (Ultra Large Transport Aircraft) is a proposed ground effect airplane under study by Boeing Phantom Works.

Development

Intended as a large-capacity transport craft for military or civilian use, it would have a wingspan of 500 feet (152.4 metres), a cargo capacity of 1,400 tons (1273 metric tonnes), and a range of about 10,000 nautical miles (18,000 km). Powered by four turboprop engines, its main mode would be to fly 20-50 ft (6-15 metres) over water, though it would also be capable of overland flight at a higher altitude but lesser range. It would operate from conventional runways, with its weight distributed over 38 fuselage-mounted landing gears with 76 wheels.VariantsThe proposal for the Pelican includes both military and civilian uses, suggesting that there may be at least two variants of the craft.Operators

Potential users include the United States Air Force, allied air forces, and civilian shipping companies.

Dwarfing all previous flying giants, the Pelican, a high-capacity cargo plane concept currently being studied by Boeing Phantom Works, would stretch more than the length of a U.S. football field and have a wingspan of 500 feet and a wing area of more than an acre. It would have almost twice the external dimensions of the world's current largest aircraft, the Russian An225, and could transport five times its payload, up to 1,400 tons of cargo.Designed primarily for long-range, transoceanic transport, the Pelican would fly as low as 20 feet above the sea, taking advantage of an aerodynamic phenomenon that reduces drag and fuel burn. Over land, it would fly at altitudes of 20,000 feet or higher. Operating only from ordinary paved runways, the Pelican would use 38 fuselage-mounted landing gears with a total of 76 tires to distribute its weight.The military, commercial and even space prospects for such a cargo plane—officially known as the Pelican Ultra Large Transport Aircraft, or ULTRA—are also huge."The Pelican can broaden the range of missions for which airplanes are the favored way to deliver cargo," said Boeing's Pelican program manager Blaine Rawdon, who is designing the plane with Boeing engineer Zachary Hoisington. "It is much faster than ships at a fraction of the operational cost of current airplanes. This will be attractive to commercial and military operators who desire speed, worldwide range and high throughput. We envision that the Pelican can multiply aircraft's 1-percent share in a commercial market now dominated by container ships."John Skorupa, senior manager of strategic development for Boeing Advanced Airlift and Tankers, said, "The Pelican currently stands as the only identified means by which the U.S. Army can achieve its deployment transformation goals of deploying one division in five days, or five divisions in 30 days, anywhere in the world." If necessary, he said, the Pelican could carry 17 M-1 main battle tanks on a single sortie. Commercially, the aircraft's size and efficiency would allow it to carry types of cargo equivalent to those carried by container ships, at more than 10 times the speed."It is attracting interest as a mother ship for unmanned vehicles, enabling rapid deployment of a network-centric warfare grid, a likely future mode of operation for modernized U.S. forces as demonstrated in Afghanistan," Skorupa said. "And it is attracting interest as a potential first-stage platform for piggybacking reusable space vehicles to an appropriate launch altitude.